United fans demand ticket policy review
THE Manchester United Supporters’ Trust has called for an urgent review of the club’s ‘ dishonest and disingenuous’ ticket policy after Sportsmail revealed that fans are being misled.
United have been accused of telling staff to withhold tickets from official members, while at the same time offering tickets to non-members to encourage them to sign up for the scheme.
Club employees are said to be unhappy at having to give out false information to fans and threatened with disciplinary action if they do not push the sale of memberships which already exceed 200,000.
United have denied the allegations but last night the Supporters’ Trust warned the club not to ‘sacrifice loyalty in the pursuit of greed’.
Spokesman Sean Bones said: ‘If these reports are accurate, it’s wrong and inappropriate to ask United staff members to lie about ticket availability to genuine supporters and members of the club.
‘ It’s both dishonest and disingenuous to treat loyal Manchester United supporters in this way.
‘We call on the club and the owners, the Glazers, to immediately review this policy and to not abuse the loyalty of time- served supporters who have already made a considerable financial investment in the membership scheme.
‘No supporter who has previously paid to be a Manchester United member should be placed behind a supporter who has not previously purchased a club membership.
‘At Manchester United, loyalty should count for everything and should not be sacrificed in the pursuit of greed.’
Supporters reacted angrily on websites and social media yesterday and a government watchdog, the Competitions and Markets Authority, welcomed Sportsmail’s report. The CMA could investigate to see if consumer protection law has been broken, while fans could also contact the Advertising Standards Authority and Trading Standards. A spokesman for the CMA said: ‘ Football fans, like any other customers, should get the deal they’re promised and be treated fairly by clubs. ‘We would welcome receiving more information from the Daily Mail on this issue, and if there is sufficient evidence of wrongdoing would consider taking action. ‘Other enforcement bodies may also be able to help fans if the law has been broken.’